Monday, 10 February 2014

cottage renovation update

Upstairs is now completely cleared and ready for electrics, radiators, patch plastering, carpets etc (but the windows need to be fitted first)

The windows are being made by hand and then painted at Border Oak before being installed next week, if the weather holds

I was going to retain the floor boards (painted white) but most of them are patched and also there are a few holes.......so we are now going for seagrass upstairs.

the base for the extension was installed last week, in between the showers/storms and to be able to do this we had to install new drains and also move the electric metre (both of which are a bit of a nuisance and also expensive - but hey ho it needed doing)

And then on Friday I popped round to measure up a fence.........and opened the front door to discover this! A great big hole in the wall (don't panic - it is supposed to be there).

The amount of light that now floods through is incredible - when I took these pics it was a dark,dank day but the new kitchen space is remarkably bright.
It also makes a huge difference to see the church beyond straight from the front door
Everything feels so much larger too.

So, the sink will be where the yellow tubing is - the cooker will sit on the wall with the concrete blocks
It is a really great space now, and so much easier to see how the space will work as an actual house. Before you had to go into the sitting room to be able to get to the back door via the corridor like kitchen. Now we have a hallway leading to a generous kitchen which looks onto the garden and the church, with full length glass and an independent sitting room.

So this is from the sink area to the stairs

The garden and the church beyond - just thinking of some landscaping ideas at the moment

Upstairs the old water cylinder cupboard has come out giving us some more room to play with

And then this afternoon I drop in to see what else I needed to organise and saw that the extension was pretty much up! It looks brilliant and it is quite exciting to see the volume of the space that will be created by something so simple.
It is also exciting to see that oak framing really does go with everything!
New windows next week and then the fun can begin inside.
Better crack on with bathrooms and kitchens and flooring and lighting and paint colours.........

2 comments:

Thank you Sue - hopefully it will finally deserve its place in the village. It's really exciting (but expensive) to do, but has made me realise that self build is a bit easier! Can't wait to share the final images with you.

About Me

I work for Border Oak, who design and build the most beautiful green oak structures.e oak structures all over the world. This blog will share behind the scenes inspiration, current projects and general nonsense to do with oak framing, houses and interiors.
All views and opinions shared here belong to me rather than the collective Border Oak mind - so it's my fault if something is wrong or a bit strange.
I live in a lovely Border Oak cottage in North Herefordshire with my husband Ben (who also works at Border Oak) and our kiddie winks - Minerva & Gabriel. We built our house 9 years ago and are forever looking for the next plot - ideally an old orchard with a bit of wild flower meadow and a long drive. Let me know if you have one for sale........